How Do You Launch Your Customer Education Course Prior to the Timeline

Jan 27, 2023

The development and launch of an online academy of instruction for your current and potential customers is a remarkable achievement. But throw in the fact that you're only one person who is in charge of the entire project and the deadline is the next 10 weeks, and you'll likely feel overwhelmed.

That's precisely what the company that makes development and software tools LANSA has done when they officially unveiled Learn LANSA which is their online learning platform powered by the most versatile and efficient low-code technology Visual LANSA.

Over the last 30 years in the past 30 years, the LANSA platform has changed the role of a programer into a full-stack developers, due to its capability to swiftly and easily deliver advanced solutions to meet the firm's greatest demands.

"We offer our most popular product that allows you to build applications quicker. We are focused on modernizing old applications," stated Anthony Graham Director of Product Marketing at LANSA.

As the Product Marketing Manager Anthony wears many hats take on in the firm. He's been a developer who assists him in explaining LANSA's capabilities and offerings to clients. Recently, he led the design of Learn LANSA.

This article will examine the method by which Anthony successfully created and launched LANSA's online academy days prior to the deadline. We'll also share our most effective tips to practice to help you achieve the same results.

How do you create online classes before timeframes for example Learn LANSA

Achieving a positive impact with an online learning experience for customers

A tech-focused company that aims to help customers develop their applications more quickly, LANSA knew there was an opportunity to expand their offerings to educate customers online to keep up with customer expectations.

"Even being able to write our own documents, we received a lot of request from our customers and prospective customers for an educational experience that was formal. For this reason, we were selling the time of our mentorship team to instruct prospective customers on how to make use of the software as well as the most effective practice," explained Anthony.

However, the LANSA team soon realized that the mentoring hours weren't employed in order to make cash. There were numerous aspects of the training process - like learning the fundamentals of the system, and learning how best to utilize LANSA's Visual LANSA system - where the customers weren't keen to use their time as mentors.

Furthermore The LANSA team found customers frequently having the same concerns after they had learned about the technology . The findings, when put into an online learning course, may be beneficial to other new customers as they begin to enroll.

The first step was that Anthony was in need of the perfect LMS to serve as his advisor to help him achieve his goals.

 The transition to Plus

LANSA's initial online education service was created using an older LMS provider, AbsorbLMS. The company soon realized that the platform was not quickly scalable enough to meet its expanding requirements.

"We had reached the moment where the updates of our product team started being released quickly as well as the documentation we created for our product was released faster - however the system we used to update e-learning content wasn't on the same page," Anthony explains.

"The concept was to create at the beginning. We found that AbsorbLMS was more expensive with the limitations for users. We were also looking for ways to expand the functionality of the app. We were of the opinion that we did not have the space to expand without spending more money. So, we decided to explore other options" explained Anthony.

"We have been able to grow through Plus effortlessly. It was easy to collaborate with team members as well as utilize pricing bands in lieu of users in the event that our experience was a hit in trial was essential. ."

Anthony was also looking for an ability to gauge student engagement via data analysis and data. They wanted, for instance, to monitor the performance of their trial programs by the capability to monitor how many students were engaged in the video as well as the amount of time that trial users were exploring the app.

 Making use of the expertise of your Customer Success Manager's knowledge

While deciding whether to choose Plus to be LANSA's new LMS provider, Anthony noted the one-on-one access to the Customer Success Manager (CSM) access to the CSM was the primary factor.

Pro tip : CSMs are not just experts of the system, but are capable of digging deeper into the details to best comprehend the context surrounding the business goals of the client.

As a team of just one person, Anthony saw extreme value in having a trusted partner guiding him throughout the process of launching. Together, Anthony and Poornima Sethu the Manager of Customer Success at Plus promptly set into action.

"We were organized starting right from the beginning. We had weekly objectives and scheduled weekly check-ins to go over the tasks which had been accomplished and discuss the next steps to be taken for the next month," explained Poornima.

With weekly assignments, Anthony and Poornima were able to break down the extensive list of items into smaller pieces that made the job appear feasible by the hour.

According to Poornima, "we just focused on those 7-8 assignments for this week, and then we got it done and moved on to work for the following week. This eased the burdensome task can be when you take on projects such as this. ."

With their organized process, which helped move the project forward at an accelerated pace, Anthony was ready to try out the online education program using an approach to launch that was three-tiered.

HTML1Launching in Phases for the most enjoyable experience for users

Beta Launch Beta Launch

In response to the suggestions of Poornima, Anthony decided to start a beta test of Learn LANSA two weeks before rolling out the course to LANSA customers. To launch the beta version Anthony was prepared with everything as well as a limited group of people who weren't involved in the project as well as Poornima was able to look over the entire material in the course, as well as ways to learn, to make sure the process made sense and offer feedback.

"The beta release was hugely useful. While working through it we came across a couple of processes we developed on our own weren't automated, and thus couldn't be scaled. With our CSM we were able determine what required to be changed and formally implemented before our soft-launch." Anthony explained. Anthony.

Soft Launch

After the beta launch, Anthony focused on implementing the improvements based on the feedback from beta before moving to the next phase of the release.

The soft launch came at a point when Anthony granted access to the facility Learn LANSA made available to a select group of customers who wanted to experience the functions of the platform. Before rolling the platform to all participants, the launch test simulated higher system stress that the initial beta release and also allows the users to test whether the changes to be made due to the previous feedback was carried out in a precise manner.

Official Launch

And, Learn LANSA was ready for the official launch around mid-May, which was about 30 days before the date of the launch in June.

 Generate leads and optimizing customer's time

Since the beginning of the program Learn LANSA in the year 2000, the program has:

  • Reached 5,700+ enrollments
  • The company has offered 30+ classes and more are being developed

By creating online classes to provide an experience for trial purposes, LANSA has the ability to quickly convert leads into customers of the site in addition to addressing many of the frequently-asked concerns in a timely way.

For existing customers, LANSA offers courses that cover the basic aspects of learning to the system and its products, resulting an increase in the use of mentoring time in order to satisfy the needs of their clients.

Image: Screenshot of Learn LANSA course cards

Guidelines for creating effective online courses by following these rules

The thought of launching an online school of education 30 days before a deadline seems a bit daunting, Anthony as well as his Learn LANSA team have proved it's feasible with the right technology as well as the necessary resources and process put in place.

Here are six suggestions to take into consideration when planning to create online courses for your online education course.

     1. Make sure you have a well-planned strategy

In the event of starting a new venture, such as developing online courses from starting point, we advise making sure that all the ducks are in a row so that the process is the most efficient and organized.

In the beginning of planning for Learn LANSA, Anthony and Poornima collectively set out with a a major objective. They followed a series of concrete steps to help make this desired goal a reality. As an example, Anthony and Poornima broke down the work that had to be accomplished prior to the event to make sure they were on track to achieve steady progress each week.

"Our principal goal was to support those who requested for online learning as well as to show our dedication to this program. Since the program's launch, we are striving to make the trial experience more accessible for customers," said Anthony.

Tips: Start with your checklist of the tasks to be done for the online course to put it into action. Then, break those items into manageable tasks and set deadlines for each.

     2. Set a realistic timeline - and adhere to it

Ideally, 6-8 weeks of the start-up phase is enough for you to design your online course , and get the program up and in operation. The timing will depend on the group which is in charge.

"It's great to work in one that has a defined schedule. If you have a team which is split with single person who is central to speed up the process since they are able to independently allocate tasks to the other team members," according to Poornima.

In the case of Anthony, it was that, even though he was project leader and executor, the process took place faster since he was the one with authority to take decision. Alternatively, if working with a large project team It is crucial to have there is at least one individual usually the lead of the project that is quick in taking decision-making to prevent a delay in setting up the timeline of the project.

The bottom line is that having someone dedicated to their work and capable to take decisions, either as an individual or as 10 people in a group can finish the task quicker which is crucial.

     3. Make bi-weekly or weekly check-in phone calls

Meeting regularly with the project team and your Plus CSM can be a fantastic way to make everyone stay on track with managing timeframes regardless of how fast.

Based upon Anthony, "having calls weekly in conjunction with Poornima was crucial. The group would review an agenda on every phone call, indicating what we planned to discuss and also inquire about any issues we had. I would receive the notes after each call, including actions items that were shared by each participant to keep the project on track. ."

     4. Create a plan for testing a beta launch

Beta launches are an excellent way to test the program before making it available to more customers. Beta launches can show that your software meets the standards that your clients are searching for. It also allows test the technical components for a smooth fully launched.

"I am an avid advocate of beta launches because the thing that usually occurs prior to launch is that every person who participates in the program has a preconceived idea of what the user experience will look similar to. When you show the program to someone who is not knowledgeable about the ideal user flow and you will get valuable feedback about the complexity of your application," said Poornima.

Tips: When choosing beta testers, ensure that you select users who had not previously used the platform and will receive real feedback from a variety of users. For example, pull in people who aren't part of the team that is developing the project or new customers who aren't familiar with your software.

     5. The flexibility to try new options and Features

As in Anthony's case, you could end up in a position that requires you to switch LMS partners and in case of this we recommend remaining open to new platform's capabilities.

"We always recommend that you switch to Plus to highlight your final purpose. Also, the CSM provides a variety of options for you to think about to reach that objective in the event that your goal is not easily replicable from past experiences or platforms. It is likely that the CSM will ultimately work better." explained Poornima.

     6. Utilize the knowledge of your CSM

Last but not least, it is important to take advantage of the expertise of your dedicated CSM They will help you in finding the best solution to meet your goals.

Through Plus Anthony was able to benefit from Poornima's expertise in the launch of highly successful online courses for education and also based on her knowledge in the process of getting Learn LANSA off the ground using a three-tier launch approach.

"My principal tip is to listen to your coach and follow his advice for success. We received a variety of suggestions," said Anthony.

     Do you wish to improve the Customer Success at your workplace? Download your Ultimate Customer Success Guide today.

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